Father Charged In Infant’s Death

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

NORTON SHORES, Mich. – A man was charged Monday for the death of his child.

Anthony Casanova, 40, was charged on open murder for the death of his 2-month-old baby boy.

Neighbors said they didn’t know much about Casanova, but he appeared to be a quiet guy that would stop to talk from time to time.

“I immediately said a prayer for them. I’m a father, I could imagine what he is going through,” a neighbor said.

On Jan. 4, at about 3:58 p.m., police were called to a home in the 5600 block of Davis Street in Norton Shores. They received a call that an infant had been dropped and was not breathing. Casanova told police, that he dropped his son Tyler, after he tripped over his dog.

Casanova was the only person home. The baby’s mother lives with Casanova at the house, but was not home when the incident happened.

“It was the intuitiveness of one of the officers that was there,” DJ Hilson, Muskegon County Prosecutor said. “They noticed some unusual bruising and injuries to the child. That’s kind of what got everyone attention.”

Upon arriving to the home, officials found the infant unresponsive. Medical personal began CPR and transferred the infant to Mercy Health Partners in Hackley, Mich.

Hilson said that Tyler had multiple injuries, including some head trauma and internal injuries.

Casanova doesn’t have any major charges in his criminal history, which has police digging for more information.

“We are looking into any prior contacts with child protective services, family court contacts,” Hilson said. “So certainly from a criminal history standpoint, he doesn’t have a large background, or multiple convictions, but we are still looking into any other involvement in the court system.”